Past Stories by Subject

Art Authentication - July 2008
See how clever computer algorithms can distinguish a master fake from a masterpiece.

Capturing Carbon - July 2008
An 8th-grader's science project prompts her scientist father to develop a new way to pull excess CO₂ out of the atmosphere.

CERN - July 2007
Beneath the Alps, the mother of all particle accelerators nears completion.

Fuel Cells - July 2005
Hydrogen fuel cell cars promise pollution-free driving, but will we see them anytime soon?

Island of Stability - Oct. 2006
Follow the decades-long quest to create the elusive element 114.

Kryptos - July 2007
A coded sculpture at CIA headquarters has yet to be fully broken.

Lab Meat? - Jan. 2006
Scientists can grow edible meat in culture from a few animal cells. Bon appétit?

Maya - Jan. 2007
NASA archeologists use satellites to pinpoint ancient ruins buried deep in the jungle.

Personal DNA Testing - July 2008
Genetic testing to assess risk factors for a handful of serious illnesses is now commercially available. But is it a good idea?

Profile: Cynthia Breazeal - Nov. 2006
A daring engineer designs robots to communicate and interact the way people do.

Profile: Brothers Chudnovsky - July 2005
The story of two brilliant mathematicians, a unicorn, and a homemade supercomputer

Profile: Hany Farid - June 2008
This self-proclaimed "accidental scientist" is a digital detective inventing new ways to tell if photos have been faked.

Profile: Karl Iagnemma - Oct. 2006
An innovative MIT roboticist is also an acclaimed fiction writer.

Profile: Yoky Matsuoka - July 2008
A former tennis prodigy aims to create advanced prosthetic limbs controlled by human thought.

Profile: James McLurkin - Jan. 2005
James McLurkin of MIT is one of the world's leading designers of robot "swarms"—groups of robots that work together for a greater purpose.

Profile: Arlie Petters - July 2007
A boy from a rural village in Belize grows up to become a world-class mathematician and cosmologist.

Saving Hubble - July 2008
Two teams of spacewalkers take on the risky mission of reviving the ailing Space Telescope.

Smart Bridges - July 2008
Can we engineer bridges that tell us what's wrong with them before it's too late?

Space Elevator - Jan. 2007
Can we build a 22,000-mile-high cable to transport cargo and people into space?

Stem Cells - Apr. 2005
What are they, and how do we find a balance between hope for cures and respect for life?

Stem Cells Breakthrough - July 2008
Three separate teams overcome a biomedical hurdle—creating stem cells without the use of human embryos.

Stem Cells Update - Jan. 2006
A new technique for creating stem cells may ease ethical concerns.

The Search for ET - July 2008
Astronomers have their radio telescopes tuned to receive signals from alien worlds. But is anybody out there?

Twin Prime Conjecture - Jan. 2006
New insight into a 2,300-year-old mystery surrounding prime numbers inspires a song.

Wisdom of the Crowds - June 2008
Ask enough people to estimate something, and the average of their guesses will get you surprisingly close to the right answer.